The Bones of Valhalla (Purge of Babylon, Book 9)

by Sam Sisavath

  Way too young to be a doctor. Maybe a nurse?

  “How’s the head?” Mary asked.

  “Pounding,” Keo said.

  She jotted something down on her notepad. “You were shot in the head. If a pounding headache’s the worst of your problems, you’re in good shape.”

  “I’ve been told I have a thick head.”

  Mary smiled. “That’s putting it mildly. I don’t think I’ve ever seen someone get head-butted to death before. You…really did a number on Calvin.”

  “Wasn’t a friend of yours, was he?”

  She shook her head. “I’ve seen him around, but no. I try to stay away from the soldiers. All that testosterone isn’t good for your health.”

  “Tell me about it,” Keo said, rubbing his bandaged forehead.

  Mary gave him some additional meds for the throbbing pain and he drifted off a few minutes later, and didn’t open his eyes again until—Well, he wasn’t entirely sure when he opened his eyes because there didn’t seem to be any clock on the walls, and the two doctors (or one doctor and a nurse) had left while he was knocked out.

  Keo grunted and tucked the pillow under him so he could (mostly) sit up on the bed. He looked across at the only other person still left in the room with him—his guard, who seemed to be staring at an old calendar on the wall to Keo’s right as if it were the most fascinating thing he had ever seen in his life.

  “Hey,” Keo said.

  The man didn’t respond.

  “Hey,” Keo said again, louder this time.

  The guy finally turned his head. “What?”

  “You got a name?”

  The guard tapped his name tag. Keo squinted, but he couldn’t make out the letters even though they weren’t that far apart. Of course, he still had a major headache and focusing on one thing was difficult, especially small letters across a room.

  “You can’t read English?” the guy asked.

  “I can even read cursive, smartass,” Keo said. “I just can’t read it from here. They told you I was shot in the head, right?”

  “And that you head-butted someone to death.”

  “That, too. So you can probably guess I’m not exactly working at one-hundred percent capacity here. Wanna help me out?”

  “Henry,” the guy said.

  “I’m Keo.”

  “I heard,” Henry said.

  Keo nodded at the bed next to him. “Can you grab me that extra pillow, Henry?”

  Henry fixed him with a suspicious look, but didn’t move from his post.

  “Oh, come on,” Keo said. “It’s not like I’m going to try anything. Didn’t Rhett tell you? We’re practically BFFs now.”

  “I doubt that’s even remotely true.”

  “Doubt all you want, but I’d still like you to grab that extra pillow for me. I’m tired of lying down. How long has it been since Mary shot me up with those sweet, sweet meds, anyway?”

  “Two hours, give or take.”

  “That’s all?”

  Henry nodded before walking over. He shifted his slung rifle from his right shoulder to his left as he did so—to take it a little more out of Keo’s reach—but otherwise didn’t look too paranoid that Keo was going to try something. Henry grabbed the pillow and handed it over, keeping a respectful distance between them before returning to the door.

  “Thanks,” Keo said after him.

  “Sure.”

  “How long’s your shift?”

  Henry glanced down at his watch. “Another hour.”

  “Hey, at least you get to leave this place.”

  “From what I’m hearing, you won’t be here very long, either.”

  “Back to the brig?”

  “Not what I meant.”

  “Ah. Good news, then.”

  Henry resumed his post and casually switched his rifle back to his right shoulder. “Despite everything you did.”

  “We talking about Mercer now?”

  “Who else?”

  “Well, there was that incident in the hallway earlier…”

  “I don’t care about that,” Henry said. “You didn’t have any choice. They were going to kill you against Rhett’s orders.”

  Keo stuffed the pillow under him and propped himself into a better sitting position. His head started to clear up even though the throbbing continued, though it had lessened noticeably since the last time he was awake. Instead of jackhammers trying to punch their way into his skull, the pain was now more like mallets banging away. But it was an improvement, and the best he could hope for after his most recent ordeal.

  “Someone once told me there were three types of people in Mercer’s army,” Keo said. “The true believers, the nonbelievers, and everyone else in between. Which one are you?”

  Henry didn’t answer right away, but Keo didn’t think he was a part of the first group. The young man didn’t have the look of a Mercerian who thought Keo had killed someone he worshipped. If anything, Henry looked angry, but not that angry. Then again, considering Keo’s ability to read faces, he could be completely off.

  “He saved us,” Henry finally said. “If it weren’t for him…”

  “That doesn’t mean you have to slaughter innocent civilians for him. There were pregnant women and kids and old men in those towns.”

  “I know that,” Henry said. He had come dangerously close to snapping. Then he added, in a much softer tone, “We all knew that.”

  “But you still went along with it.”

  “I…stayed behind. A lot of us who had problems with it did the same. The ones that went out there, the kill teams, were the true believers, as you call them.”

  “Like Bellamy and Calvin?”

  Henry nodded. “They’re not the only ones. That’s why I’m here and Pete’s outside.”

  “Pete?”

  “The other guard. He’s in the hallway.”

  “Two guards to keep me safe,” Keo chuckled. “I told you Rhett and I are practically BFFs now.”

  Henry didn’t say anything.

  “So Rhett’s in charge of this place now?” Keo asked.

  “Pretty much.”

  “Who decided that?”

  “The others, I guess.”

  “Did you get a vote?”

  “I’m not that high up.”

  “How do you guys know who’s up and who’s down if no one wears a rank?”

  “It’s not that hard to figure out. Everyone knows who was in charge before and who’s in charge now. We’ve had a year to figure it out.”

  “I’m not much for official rankings myself, but that sounds dangerously chaotic.” When Henry didn’t respond, Keo said, “So, question.”

  “What now?”

  “What happened to my food?”

  “Your food?”

  “You mean no one brought me my food?”

  “Not that I saw.”

  “Rhett promised he’d send some food over, and not that slop you guys have been feeding me in the brig.”

  “Maybe he forgot.”

  “What an asshole.” Then, smiling at Henry, “You wouldn’t mind—”

  “Not my job,” Henry interrupted.

  “How about Pete?”

  “Not his job, either.”

  “Do a guy a solid, huh? I’m starving.”

  Henry didn’t bother with a reply.

  Keo sighed. “At least tell me something, just to keep my mind off the food people keep promising but never delivering.”

  “What?” Henry said.

  “Mary.”

  “What about her?”

  “She single?”

  “She’s married.”

  “No shit?”

  “No shit.”

  “I didn’t see a ring on her finger.”

  “Maybe not technically married. It’s not like there are priests around or anything. But she’s shacking up with some dude. I think his name’s Gary.”

  “Well, that sucks.”

  “For you, maybe.”

  �
�I thought it was fairly obvious that was what I meant,” Keo said. “Now, let’s figure out how to get me some food, Henry…”

  It was nice to be up and about, even with the cold wind whipping at his face. Rhett had been nice enough to give him a windbreaker, socks, and boots to complete his new wardrobe, so the only thing exposed to the elements as he stood on the beach of Black Tide Island was his face. It might have been the harsh chill, with much of the breeze unhindered by the island’s relatively flat land mass, or maybe lingering effects of the meds, but the throbbing in Keo’s head had lessened dramatically.

  Mary stood next to him, hands stuffed inside her coat’s pockets while unsuccessfully trying to stop her body from shivering. Apparently she wasn’t nearly as happy to be outside as he was, though as his nurse she had no choice but to follow him around in case he fell on his face.

  “Can we go back inside now?” she asked after a while.

  “What’s the hurry?” Keo said.

  “It’s freezing out here!”

  “It’s nice weather for a walk.”

  “No, it’s not.”

  “Of course it is. Come on.”

  Keo started down the beach, and Mary had to hurry to catch up. “Slow down, Keo!”

  He didn’t know why she felt the need to shout. They were close enough that he could smell her perfume. Or was that just regular feminine scent? He couldn’t be sure after spending three days in that jail cell with nothing to occupy his sense of smell but his own BO.

  His boots squished in the soft sand, but he stayed far enough from the incoming tide to keep from getting wet. It was nice out, but he didn’t feel like getting wet, too.

  They were somewhere at the back of the island, the same general vicinity where he had landed with Erin not all that long ago. The guys watching him like hawks from a distance might have even been the same men who had helped him and Erin come ashore that night. He counted two guards when he first arrived at the beach, then two more had showed up later. It wasn’t like he was going anywhere without a boat in sight, so the men, as with Henry and Pete back in sickbay, were likely here more for his protection.

  Which made Keo wonder: How many more true believers were out there, waiting for their chance to finish what Bellamy and Calvin had started? He’d been lucky so far, but luck was luck because it tended to come and go.

  Maybe coming out here and walking around in the open wasn’t such a good idea after all.

  “Keo!” Mary shouted as she caught up to him.

  She was already breathing hard, as if this was the most exertion she’d had in a while. And maybe it was. Mercer had brought these people to the island a long time ago, and many of them had never left. He didn’t blame them for not wanting to leave, though. It was human nature not to voluntarily abandon a safe place. Lara and the others had done the same on Song Island, fighting to the very bitter end to hold onto it and only jumping ship when they no longer had any choice.

  Like a few thousand ghouls coming out of a hole in the ground. Yeah, that’ll make you change your mind about a place real fast.

  “Henry told me you’re married,” Keo said.

  “What?” Mary said. She gave him an odd look, as if she couldn’t believe they were having this conversation. He thought she had very lovely brown eyes. “He said I was married?”

  “Not married, married, but taken. By some guy named Gary.”

  “He said I was taken by Gary?”

  “Aren’t you?”

  “I’m not.”

  “No?”

  “Not that it’s any of your business.”

  “I was just curious.”

  She took her hands out of her pockets and folded them across her chest for warmth.

  “Cold?” he asked.

  “What do you think?”

  “A little body heat would fix that.”

  “Yeah, right,” she said, and moved away until there were a couple of extra feet between them.

  “Oh, come on; I don’t bite. At least not if you don’t want me to.”

  “You think you’re charming, don’t you?” Mary said, narrowing her eyes back at him.

  “You mean it’s not working?”

  “Not even a little bit.”

  “Give me a break. I almost died today. You know what happens when you almost die?”

  “No, but I’m sure you’re going to tell me.”

  “You start thinking about what’s important in life. Like a pretty nurse in a tan-colored uniform.”

  She shook her head, but he caught just a ghost of a smile on her lips. “I’m already seeing someone. Gary, remember?”

  “I thought you said you weren’t taken.”

  “I’m not. I’m just seeing him. There’s a difference.”

  “Is it serious?”

  “Not really,” she said quickly. Then, maybe catching her mistake, “Maybe. I don’t know.”

  That’s definitely a “not really.”

  “Word’s already gotten out about your friends,” Mary said. “The ones on the way here to meet with Rhett. Something about a plan to beat the ghouls and win the war?”

  Keo smiled. “Are we changing the subject?”

  “Absolutely,” she said, and this time didn’t try to hide her smile. “Is it true?”

  “Yeah. It’s true.”

  “How?”

  “I think you’re going to have to wait for your commanders to tell you that.”

  “Tell me now.”

  “What do I get in return?”

  “You know those pain meds I’ve been giving you for that raging headache you’re currently experiencing? Well, sometimes they can be a little hard to locate.”

  “I love a woman who knows how to blackmail.”

  She rolled her eyes. “So what is it? What’s the plan? Tell me something.”

  “There’s a guy out there who knows how they operate. He knows just about everything there is to know about them, including how to beat them. And none of it involves shelling towns with pregnant women and children.”

  They had stopped walking and Mary stared at him, though now she didn’t look nearly as cold as before. Or at least her body wasn’t trembling against the wind, even as long dark hair splayed across her pretty face.

  “We can take back the planet,” she said.

  “That’s the idea,” Keo nodded.

  “But how?”

  “I’ll tell you under one condition…”

  She narrowed her eyes suspiciously at him. “And that is…?”

  “I gotta find a cafeteria, Mary. I’m starving here.”

  She laughed. “Okay, Keo. Okay. Follow me.”

  She turned and led him back up the beach. He followed, eyes drawn irresistibly to the way her ass moved beneath her slacks.

  “Are you staring at my ass?” Mary said, glancing over her shoulder back at him.

  “Of course not,” Keo said. “I’m insulted you would think that.”

  “Riiiiight,” she said.

  “Question, Mary.”

  “Oh God, what now?”

  “When you said you weren’t taken, how untaken are you?” Keo asked.

  13

  Gaby

  The morning sun beat down on them as they climbed out of the boat and made their way up the beach, careful not to step on the carcasses of sea life that had washed ashore. There wasn’t very much in the way of living things to greet them, though there was plenty of grass that went all the way up to their knees and, at various points, tickled at their waists. But they had expected the open fields, having seen them last night as they sat in the fifteen-footer and waited for dawn to come.

  They had taken the small craft in by trolling motor to hide their approach, then let the waves take over for about half a mile before switching to paddles. Maybe they were being too cautious (if there were such a thing these days), but the fact that everything depended on this—getting Will to where he needed to be—weighed heavily on all their shoulders. If Gaby hadn’t volunteered for t
he mission with her eyes open, the responsibility might have been too much to bear.

  She was the first one to step foot on the mushy sand, then the first one in the grass. She moved quickly and quietly, M4 in front of her and Danny’s gifted cross-knife at her hip. Maybe it was a combination of Zoe’s pills and adrenaline, but she hadn’t felt this good in days, even weeks, and the soreness from her shoulder was barely a blip on her radar. She didn’t stop until she was twenty yards up the beach and crouching in grass, her breath forming mists around her as she breathed in and out, in and out, concentrating almost as much on her surroundings as she did to control her accelerated heartbeat.

  “Gaby,” Blaine whispered from behind her.

  She glanced back and shook her head.

  He nodded, then jumped out of the boat to join Bonnie, and the two of them pulled the vessel out of the ocean. By the time they reached land, their pants, like hers, were soaked in cold water up to the knees. There was just enough green around them that if she didn’t look closely she wouldn’t have spotted the drab olive hull of the fifteen-footer as Bonnie tied its line to a rock, then pulled it tight to ensure it didn’t go anywhere. There was very little chance they would actually need it again, but it was better to have it available in case they did.

  Just in case, right, Lara?

  It was strange to hope they wouldn’t need the boat again, but that was exactly the best possible outcome. She had every confidence in Will’s plan—even if he did have to alter it at the last minute—not only because it was Will who had engineered it, but because he had gone to such great lengths to bring it to them.

  Now all we have to do is get it done…without everyone dying first.

  Yeah, no pressure.

  When she looked back a second time, Blaine and Bonnie had started removing items from the boat and putting them on the beach. She couldn’t help but feel a little guilty about making them do all the heavy lifting. Besides her own pack, she just had her gun belt and rifle. Her job was to provide security, a task that she relished. Bonnie had gotten very good with her weapon in recent months, but she was still a notch below Danny and Gaby. Though to hear Lara tell it, none of them could touch Peters, some guy who had come aboard with Riley’s crew.